Fans operate like wind chill....They change the perception of temperature by moving air...Love them in the summer

All depends on the space, of course.

And the fan!

The noise KILLS ME. It's really faint, but I'm starting to think I'm just one of those people that are super sensitive to auditory irritation. That and fans scare one of our cats to death - he's so weird.

@feeny: Ha! That is a very good point you make too. Maybe I've just been unlucky and have been around annoyingly loud fans. :(

I agree that there are very few fans that have an elegance - however design is evolving to make the regular housefan a bit more interesting. Having said that, it would have to be in a futuristic home to work... (I use geothermal heating/cooling - much nicer!)

Must-have at our house. We don't have central air- not huge fans of lots of a/c, plus in our old house the ductwork wouldn't carry it upstairs very well anyway. We have one window unit in the upstairs hall and one in the master bedroom during the summer months, only used when it really gets bad. The rest of the time we get by with ceiling fans and country breezes :)

I agree with Chandani that it can often depend on the space. With that said, the picture of the living room you attached looks fantastic, especially since the ceilings are a bit higher. Great fan choice too!

the noise though!
but depending on the space and the location, i can see how fans must feel terrific on a hot day.

For high ceilings, great rooms veranda's. They easily create a tropical ambiance while being functional

In Austin, ceiling fans are a necessity.

If you buy a good one there is no sound! And really they are a must here in Southern Ca, especial with the cost of electricity!!!

Can't really vote on this one. I think that ceiling fans are needed to move the air around, but are so obtrusive. Haven't seen a ceiling fan yet that made me think, it's beautiful I must have!

ceiling fans are important in the summer.

We have them in most rooms, but only use in 1 or 2 most of the time. A large fan is a must in a 2 story foyer to keep the air from collecting one way or another depending on season. We have found that investment worth it. Ours looks much better than the standard brass chandelier the builder installed that never got used and was impossible to clean. C-Fans are good for an otherwise stuffy room without having to turn on A/C in summer. They are especially nice if you get "hot flashes" at night or if your home just can't catch the cross- breezes.

There are now some very stylized and modern ones on the market

We are moving in 2 days to a house with 14' ceilings. I am grateful it has ceiling fans to direct warm air back to us below 6'. I feel they are important to modulating temperature efficiently.

Well, in this room, Jeannie, who would say no?

In ordinary rooms, a big NO. Hate fans.

Here are a few nicer models.

Not a big fan of ceiling fans,with some exceptions. Our living room has a tray ceiling and gas logs. With the fan blowing up it takes the air to the other rooms. Works great. I really dislike fans in the bedroom. Not for the noise, just don't want the air blowing. Also not attractive

Yes they have better designs now, reversible ones are great for circulating warm air back down in large spaces with high ceiling. They are getting quieter too. I do not like the blowing air myself right above me just like I do not like sitting in an open car.

I must have my ceiling fans. In South Florida, you "find" a way to make them work with your decor... year round!

Son estéticos y dan la sensación de tener corriente dentro del espacio ya que hacen que el aire circule. Tienen varias velocidades. No producen casi ruido, si están bien instalados. Supone un ahorro de energía si lo comparamos con cualquier otro sistema de enfriar el ambiente. Algunos modelos, vienen con iluminación.

I live in the Deep South. Fans are a necessity.

We live in Minnesota and I LOVE my ceiling fans in the summer and winter!!! We are in the process of building a new home and we will be installing them in both the Great Room and Master Bedroom. Spend the $$$ and buy good ones!!!

I live in Florida, even with central air, certain rooms in the house get too warm and the fans help a lot.

Must have. Then again, I dislike being hot inside.

Buy a quality fan and noise will not be an issue.

my room is just like this, only with the one single beam across the top and i am dying to install fans! i am also liking the look of the other beams...

these fans look beautiful in this room - they enhance the space - and functional too!

Our room is similar to the one in the photo with a single wood beam at the ceiling's apex. The fan hangs only a foot or so below the beam so it does not obstruct our views. It is whisper quiet, beautiful and functional. We also have fans in the bedrooms which we love.

we have ceiling fans on our porches and balconies. in the house we rely on central A/C and an occasional electric fan.....which comes and goes with the weather. the thing about ceiling fans inside the house is that they are always there, and stylistically, they just don't go with our decor.

They move air on hot humid days here in Hawaii, and that's a good thing. In this room, I would prefer more elegant fan style and in a lighter color. The dark ones are too heavy. Needs fans that "disappear" into the white of the ceiling between the beams.

I would probably paint the beams white like the ceiling and walls and use white fans so they disappear

I only like ceiling fans in rooms with high ceilings. People forget that you can turn the blades to different angles depending on if it is summer or winter so the fan either sends the air up toward the ceiling or down into the room. In the summer you want the blades to cool you, in the winter you want to use the fan to bring the hot air that rose to the ceiling back down into the room. It used to be an annual spring and fall event to change the fan blades at my grandparent's home. Of course since they didn't have air conditioners and used a wood stove for heating this may have been more important in the big old farmhouse. They'd close off most of the house including the bedrooms in the winter and only heat the kitchen & living room and one bathroom. The other bathroom had the water shut off to prevent the pipes freezing. There was a big hook like one would hang a chandelier from in one of the ceilings of a room that was routinely shut off in the winter and the family story is that was where they'd hang a side of beef in the winter to keep it frozen.

Like everything, it depends on the model and the space, but I love the one in our bedroom. It is essential, year-round.

I guess I am in the minority here, but I don't mind the look of them at all. I too live in a warm climate, so they are a necessity, but I think they add a wonderful tropical feel to my rooms. But I agree, a quality fan makes a big difference, both in style and functionality.

In Louisiana fans are necessary!

I dislike the look of any fan I can afford, but not having them is not an option in southern Arizona. Now if I could have one of these...

Unless you need them for a really hot climate no get rid of them and I would also paint out those ceiling beams to white to make the room more open and airier and less focus on the ceiling. More where you are living.

If you have to have fans get something white to blend not stand out, and paint those ceiling beams white as well.

Summers get really hot here in La Paz, Mexico, and I don't have AC. My five huge ceiling fans wouldn't win any decorating prizes, but I couldn't get through the season without them. I LOVE air blowing on me when I'm sleeping, and hot air is better than none.

Ceiling fans are an absolute must in Central Florida!

In the south, in Texas, it is almost requisite. When we moved from Kansas, never saw a ceiling fan before we moved down here. I absolutely love our handscraped wood fan blades with rivets and moves the air effortlessly and quietly. Hampton Bay Altura

one other responder kind of alluded to this......when I was younger, I thought ceiling fans were kind of goofy looking. enter mid life hot flashes......and ceiling fans are a necessity, especially in bed rooms. the one in my bedroom has almost a Celtic knot reference in its burnished hardware, against dark wood....quite elegant.

Our fans are multi-colored & we love them!

I have a love/ hate relationship with ceiling fans! Love them when I'm hot, love them when the are attractive, hate them when they usually aren't, hate them when people put them in the kitchen and they fling grease and dust all over your food!!!

i wish a company would come out with a base that can have either a fan or chandelier attached to, so i could take the fan down after the summer instead of looking at it all year.

Would love to know the make and model of the fans in the picture.